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Middle School

Inside Look at a Middle School Science Classroom

From left to right, Abby, Anna and Christa test their water filter. Lab groups are designing filters for specific assigned countries. They must use items that citizens of that country would have on hand. These girls have been assigned Bangladesh, a country with an abundance of arsenic in its water. They are using brick chips and cigarette ashes in attempt to filter the arsenic.
One student prepares to filter water through large rocks.
Students closely examine the cleanness of the water they filtered.
From left to right, Andrea, Carrie and Anne look at pictures of the experiments they have already tried. Their assigned country is Kenya and their goal is to filter debris. They have tried using rock, coarse sand, white sand, charcoal, limestone, cloth and coffee filters. Andrea says the white sand has worked the best, while limestone and charcoal were the worst.
Abby records her group’s findings.
Abby, Anna and Christa share their findings with the coordinator of the STEM program.
After the lab, students work on an assignment in the textbook. They are encouraged to work together.
The STEM Coordinator is impressed by the kids in the program. “I’d rather be doing this than just about anything,” he says.
© 2014. Project Athena in collaboration with SWE.